Gene may influence body shape, metabolic disease risk, study finds

March 23, 2015 4:57 PM

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Researchers at Duke University have identified a protein that may help determine whether a person will develop an apple- or pear-shaped body, which could point to his or her risk of diabetes or heart disease.

In the study, published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists analyzed zebrafish with and without the Plexin D1 gene, and found that those missing the gene had less visceral fat and were less likely to develop insulin resistance, a precursor of diabetes, e...